Environment Mobile on Tour in Albania

Four Albanian teachers use the FiKiBio Environment Mobile to tell schoolchildren about climate and environmental conservation.

Four teachers have been nominated by the Albanian Ministry for Education, Sport and Youth, to be the first to use the ‘FiKiBio’ Environment Mobile – the first of its kind in Albania – to tell children about environmental topics at school. This will make an important contribution to helping Albanian children and young people to understand impacts on the environment and the climate.

The pedagogical focus of this innovative and interactive approach to teaching is on the themes of climate, water, energy, air and recycling, which are especially relevant to Albania. ‘Action cards’ have been specially designed and produced to meet Albanian needs, describing and illustrating ideas related to the themes and enabling the children to approach the topics of climate action and environmental protection through play. The four teachers from Tirana gave their new Environment Mobile the name ‘FiKiBio’, derived from the initial syllables of the school subjects physics (fizikë), chemistry (kimi) and biology (biologji). The logo showing a curious and wise owl was developed at a joint art event with Albanian children, and from now on the mascot will accompany the bus on its travels across Albania.

Susanne Schütz, the German Ambassador, ceremonially presented the FiKiBio with its extensive technical equipment to Lindita Nikolla, the Albanian Minister for Education, Sport and Youth, in Tirana on 8 October 2018. In future the FiKiBio team will enrich teachers’ on-the-job training in Albania and at the same time encourage schoolchildren to learn by discovering things in nature for themselves. The response to the bus has all been positive. For example, on the day after it was handed over, an Albanian teacher on Facebook asked the FiKiBio team to visit his school. An on-site coaching session is planned for next year involving two teachers from Germany who are specialists in teaching children about forests.

Procuring and equipping the eco-bus, and providing teachers’ ongoing training, form part of the measure Improving Environmental Awareness in Albania, which is being implemented as part of the GIZ project Capacity Development for Climate Policy in Southeast and Eastern Europe, South Caucasus and Central Asia, Phase III and in cooperation with the project Climate-friendly Integrated Solid Waste Management and Circular Economy in Albania. It is part of the International Climate Initiative (IKI) and is promoted by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMU).

A large number of other partners such as the Natur- und Umweltschutz-Akademie NRW, the Berlin-based NGO BildungsCent e.V. and the working group Umweltmobile AGUM have supported GIZ and the Albanian partners by supplying know-how and have been involved in organising flashmobs, training seminars and advisory services, and in creating teaching materials.